1. Technical Field
This invention relates to a toilet seat and, more particularly, to an auxiliary toilet seat for providing user comfort during operating conditions.
2. Prior Art
In caring at home for persons who cannot care for themselves, it is often inconvenient for them to use a bathroom that does not meet their needs. Conventional toilets are unsuitable for such patients and even perhaps for persons with slight handicaps. It is true that these toilets can be adapted or reconstructed to suit the needs of these persons, but this is very expensive and sometimes, as in rented apartments, is not allowed. With increasing age or with handicaps from illness come physical limitations that make it impossible for a person to use conventional toilets without help from others.
As nursing home accommodations for such patients become increasingly expensive, it is becoming more and more common for them to be cared for at home. Daily care for such a patient demands enormous effort on the part of the caregiver since, as a rule, the patient must be transported onto the toilet, and afterward, back into bed. In general, wheelchairs cannot be used in conventional bathrooms.
The use of commode chairs is known in the prior art. The primary users of such commode chairs often have some type of physical disability that impairs the freedom of movement of the user. Because of their disabilities, commode chair users can find it difficult, if not impossible, to sense and react to the occurrence of points of excessive and prolonged pressure on the user's body. For example, two points where pressure may concentrate on the buttocks of the user are the areas of flesh surrounding the trochanter and ishial areas of the skeleton. The exposure to the pressure for a prolonged period can lead to a break down of the user's skin, and may produce open sores that can become infected and even lead to amputations of the legs of the user.
Commode chairs heretofore known have included various structures for reducing the supportive pressure exerted on the buttocks of the user. Commode chairs having cushions with enhanced padding, and even inflatable cushions, have been devised for reducing the likelihood of problems caused by excess concentrations of pressure on the skin of the user. One concern with cushions that exert less pressure on vulnerable points of the user's body is that these softer cushions tend to provide less firmness for the user, and thus, the user tends to feel less stable in the chair.
The reduced stability can be of a significant concern to users who do not have full control of their bodies, since these users are less able to react to situations such as, for example, leaning too far in a lateral direction with respect to the commode, or even in a rearward direction toward the rear of the commode. The lessened stability problem appears to be the greatest for the inflatable cushions, since the air within the cushion tends to not provide any significant resistance to these lateral or rearward movements. The air cushions may be provide even less stability when the interior air pressure of the cushion is reduced in order to provide a softer cushion, as compared to higher interior air pressure cushions.
Accordingly, a need remains for an auxiliary toilet seat in order to overcome the above noted shortcomings. The present invention satisfies such a need by providing a toilet seat that is easily accessible and provides superior support and comfort when compared to conventional toilet seats. Such a toilet seat features a larger diameter and armrests that provide stability, especially to handicapped or injured individuals. The auxiliary toilet seat can easily be added to a conventional toilet bowl. Such a toilet seat is appreciated by individuals caring for an injured or handicapped loved-one at home, as well as by nursing homes, hospitals and public restrooms that wish to provide improved comfort.